I. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of strollers, and more particularly to strollers that can be used to transport infant carriers of varying shapes and sizes.
II. Description of the Prior Art
In order to protect infants in the event of an automobile accident, there has been an increase in the use of protective car seats, and in many states the use of protective car seats is required by law. A stroller which can transport a car seat eliminates the need for removing the infant from the car seat and placing them into a different seat in the stroller. With this type of stroller, the infant may be transferred from car to stroller with a minimum amount of disruption. Also, this type of stroller requires less storage space than the alternative of having a stroller with a built in seat and having a separate protective car seat.
The prior art contains many car seat/stroller combinations. Most of the combinations are proprietary with respect to the particular car seat that they utilize. Some of the various designs include integral car seat/stroller combinations. U.S. Pat. No. 4,537,414 issued to Nusbaum, discloses a self contained car seat/stroller Combination. The unit converts from a car seat to a stroller by means of a retractable handle and a retractable base with wheels. This unit eliminates the need for a separate stroller, but does not offer a solution for someone that already has a protective car seat and wants to be able to continue to use the car seat, both in the car and in a stroller.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,135,567 issued to Owens discloses a combination car seat and stroller that includes an infant carrier which can be converted into a protective car seat or a stroller depending on the use of attachments. For use as a car seat, the infant carrier is attached to a base which can be secured in the car with a safety belt. By attaching a stroller handle assembly and a stroller wheel assembly to the base, the infant carrier is transformed into a stroller. This device approaches the problem from a modular approach as opposed to the integral approach of Nusbaum, but the base in the Owens patent can only accommodate the specific infant carrier for which it was designed. Thus, an existing car seat could not be used in the system without modification.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,1217940 to March discloses an umbrella type collapsible stroller frame which is adapted to carry infant carriers of varying dimensions. The collapsible stroller frame has a sling and straps which allow the stroller to support a variety of different sized infant carriers. At the front, lower end of the stroller frame a support member holds a sling. The front portion of the support member and the sling element accommodate the front of the infant carrier, and the back of the infant carrier is supported by straps which span the space between the frame rails. The infant carrier can be further secured to the stroller frame by the use of additional straps which can be attached to the handle or body portion of the infant carrier.